Concert Dress

Wow August was a busy month! It's hard to believe it's September and the two of the kiddos are back in school. I've spent my "extra" time trying to get caught up on things that I can not seem to get done with three in the house. Fortunately, sewing is one of the things I can do with all of them around. Good thing too because I've been back to sewing up a storm. With the anticipation of school I created a new pattern for a boxy pencil bag, sewed a bunch and spent some time selling them. I have a fall craft show I signed up for and started preparing for. I will share what I will be selling at the show over the next weeks.

One of my sewing projects this month has been a concert dress. I was asked to take a womens extra-small concert t-shirt and make it into a dress for a little girl. This lucky little girl is going to the concert and has a backstage pass to meet the artist. I feel honored that I was asked to create the dress for the event. It was a bit of challenge to find the right style that didn't lose to much of the image on the t-shirt.

 Sadly, I lost part of the name on the front but I was able to salvage the back.

I settled on a raglan peasant style bodice with elastic neckline and sleeve. After deliberation this style provided the width to best take advantage of the image. This little girl likes to twirl so a skirt was a necessity. I used two full widths of fabric to make sure it had plenty of twirl.

(When I took these pictures the little lady had not yet tried on the dress so I hadn't finished the casement for the elastic neckline and the arms. I was waiting so I can have her try it on so we can make it the perfect fit.)

It's fun to make a completely custom item. It can be a daunting at first but the outcome is always very rewarding.

Time to get back to the sewing machine and mass productions mode : )

Thanks for stopping by the nest!

Darla

T Shirt Twirly Dress are available!... Finally

So finally, after a rash of interest in the t-shirt twirly dresses again, I gathered up all of my current stock and got them listed on Esty's yesterday. When I originally posted these dresses here, I planned on putting them in the Etsy's shop but new projects kept getting in the way of me getting it done (the curse of the creative person :).  I have 8 dresses left sizes 18 months - 5T and are in a variety of colors and styles. 

 

The pink and yellow is a 3T and the Purple is 24 month/2T

 The gray scale dress is 18 months and red & black is 24month/2T

 

The circle skirt dress is 24month/2T and the black and white is 24 month/2T

The scarlet & gray (OSU inspired) dress is 4T and the green & black is 5T

 All of the flowers and yoyo's come removable and
can be worn on the dress or in a little ones hair.

Most of what I made over the past couple years has been custom order requests. Right now I am no longer taking custom requests but I do have plans to make more dress as I have time that I will add to the shop.

I've also had many requests for the sewing pattern. I have hope of creating the PDF pattern this year but I am not sure if I am going to sell it or just post it for free. Please check back from time to time for the pattern if you are interested.

Thanks for stopping by the nest!
Darla

KCW Winter 2015 - T-Shirt Dresses

Kids Clothes Week has come and gone. I managed to complete three items this week. Two of which are t-shirt dresses. I am really surprise by the response I get when ever I make these. They seem to have that nice balance between comfortable, girly and dressed up. My daughter really enjoy's wearing them and I enjoy making them. However, these two are for other little girls whom I hope get hours of spin time out of them. 

I've been asked recently where I get my fabric. Most of it comes from my local Hobby Lobby and Joann Fabrics. Some come from on-line retailers like Fabric.com. For these dresses all the fabric came from Hobby Lobby. I find I like the quality of most of their fabrics. They don't have a huge selection but what they do is usually really pretty, like this light teal and lavender print. 

I have also received numerous email's requesting the patterns for the four different styles I make. I have been waffling back and forth on that one for sometime and finally decided that I should do that. I'm not sure when or how it will be available but I am working on it. If anyone is interested in doing pattern testing send me an email and I will add you to the list. I sell the dresses 18 months to 5T so that will probably be the same range of my patterns.

I am sure there is a good number of sewist who have no problem reproducing these dresses by doing some basic calculations. But for those not interested in doing the math I can understand why you would like a pattern. 

As I contemplate creating patterns for these dresses there are so many possibilities on how to use these basic skirt patterns. They can be added to virtually any bodice (pre-made or handmade) or a standalone skirt. And lets not forget the embellishment possibilities.

Again, if you are interested in doing pattern testing for the t-shirt dress patterns send me an email or leave me a comment with your email address.

Thanks for stopping by the nest!
Darla

Holiday Dresses

So here I am taking about the holiday dresses when it is almost February. Shameful I know but I just won't feel caught up unless I get these posted.

I originally posted about Hannah's Thanksgiving dress here but didn't have the pictures of her in it at the the time. Seems I am very behind in all things again. Sometime in this life time I hope to be more timely. I've been told once my kiddo's are in full time school I'll be able to reclaim some time. I sure hope they are right.

Over the holiday's I was discussing with a friend how difficult it is to find long sleeve dresses for the holiday's. Seems like an odd thing to me that there aren't more. Because of this I gravitate to the sweater dresses (that are surprisingly short sleeve too)  that can be layered. I'm a crazy Mom who thinks her daughter should be warm during winter even if it's a special occasion.

I would have loved to make a more formal dress with long sleeves but it just wasn't in the cards between the typical holiday bluster, sicknesses and completing orders for others. Maybe next year I can plan better

At the last minute I put together more yo yo's (something nice to do while relaxing on the couch in the evenings) and attached them to some FOE (fold over elastic) I had on hand for a matching headband. I have to say the FOE is perfect for headbands, it is soft and has a nice gentle give. Hannah calls it her princess crown.

I realized when I went to put together a quick Christmas dress for Hannah that I have never made a tiered dress for her. I've made gobs of  tiered dresses for others and a few circle skirt dresses for Hannah but never a tiered one. 

I thought it was time to give her one. I have been hording Christmas fabrics over the years only buying the ones I really like (which there is usually only one of each year). I hope to quilt together some for stockings and tree skirt some day but this year I felt that this dress was worthy of depleting some of my stock. 

In the end I really wasn't disappointed not the having the shiny satin or velvet dress this year. Hannah loved it in all it's simplicity and I loved that she could wear it all Christmas Day comfortably. 

By the end of Christmas day it was well worn, covered in chocolate and what ever else she got in to that day. I tossed it in the washer with all the other clothes, no added steps and it came out like new. I did make her a matching yo yo headband to go with this dress too. It however, didn't fair as well. Her brother was using it like a rubber band to get a rise out of her (successfully) and one of the yo yo came undone.  Ah, sibling love : )

Oh I forgot to mentioned, the middle layer is sparkly. That made it all the more princess-y in her eyes.

It's a bit late but I hope you all had a blessed Christmas!

Thanks for stopping by the nest.
Darla

Thanksgiving Dress

I don't know about you guys but my family has been fighting off sicknesses left and right. I am just now getting over pneumonia. Nothing worse than a busy Mom being in bed for a week. Thank the heavens for a good husband. Sadly, it has put a delay on all things creative for a while. Fortunately, my family seems to be getting past everything so I have been able to start getting in the swing of things again. Just in time for the holidays.

Now that I am healthy again made Fall inspired paneled circle skirt dress. It's perfect for Thanksgiving. I have made this style before here. Like most sewist I have a bit of an addiction to fabrics and all of the glorious designs & patterns they come in. This dress uses four of those glorious fabrics. 

It's a full circle skirt so it has a lot a spin to it. Hannah has been pestering me to wear it every time she sees it. I am making her wait till Thanksgiving Day though.

As I pointed out in my last sewing post I have a new obsession with Yo-Yo's. I really liked how it worked out for the last dress I made for Hannah and it incorporates more of those fabrics I love so much so I couldn't resist.

I learned my lesson though, Yo-yo's don't wash well. This time I attached it to a hair clip so it can be removed for washing and bonus it can be clipped anywhere including her hair. 

I decided to add a little something extra this time. A simple zigzag stitch in contrasting thread on the skirt trim. When I think of Fall I think of zigzags for some reason. Must be jack-o-lantern mouths, scarecrows or something. I love how it turned out. I need to get familiar with my decorative stitches on my machine and start adding more accents like this to my projects.

Since we live in Ohio State Buckeye country I have been requested to make this dress in scarlet and grey for an OSU inspired dress. I have collected the fabrics and I'm looking forward to making it. I will post pictures when it is done.

Thanks for stopping by the nest.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Darla

Little girls simple dress 4 way's

3/19/2016: UPDATE! Etsy's Shop is open and some of these dresses are still available.

It has been two weeks since I posted something and figured I should show you what I have been up to. I have been very busy designing and sewing. The tier twirly dress that I posted here had me completely inspired to make more. I came up with four different skirt designs (not including the original variation) for dresses that range in sizes 18 months - 5t. I have decided to make and sell these dresses. I haven’t set up an Etsy’s shop yet so for now just locally and to friends and family. 

The Tier Dress

This is a little more formal than the original twirly tier dress. All of the seams are hidden and I added a sash. The black and white above I used a wide gross grain ribbon for the sash and the two below I used a coordinating fabric. The flowers on all three are clips I made so they can be worn any where.

The Jelly Roll Dress

I had a quilters jelly roll in my stash that I was dying to put to use. This dress is not as formal and makes a great everyday dress. The flower is a clip too.

 The Circle Skirt Dress

This is by far my favorite of the dresses. It was so simple to put together once you figure out how to do circle skirt calculations. It does take a lot of fabric but I think it is worth it. This is the ultimate twirl dress.

I tried something new when tying this sash. I wanted the tie in the front but still wanted a clip flower so I had my husband tie the sash like a neck tie. This is a fantastic option. I really like the fact that it can be loosed and tightened with out having take it apart. No wrestling with the kid to tie a sash right. 

The Paneled Circle Skirt

I took the circle skirt pattern I made for the last dress and divided it in to panels. This dress is amazing when it is twirled. 

There is a fifth skirt design that I am working on for little Ohio State Buckeye dresses. I am really excited about that one. I will post it as soon as it is done. 

Since I am making these to sell I don’t plan on posting my measurements and patterns, sorry. If you are interested in purchasing one for now contact me at littlequailcreated@gmail.com and we can make arrangements.  Check out the shop!

Thanks for stopping by the nest!

Darla

Tiered Twirly Dress Tutorial

It was my sweet little cousin's birthday this past week and I was feeling really inspired to make her a dress. She is a girly, girl and loves purple. When I had made the skirt here, I was a little disappointed that it didn't twirl and I really wanted to give her something that made her want to spin. Every little girl should have a twirly dress, don't you think? 

When I had the opportunity to pull this dress together I was really pressed for time, so I took a short cut using a t-shirt for the bodice. It was the first time I had done this and I was surprised how well it worked. Since the dress came together so quickly I was able to make her a matching headband and a clippy flower that she can wear on the dress, on the headband or just in her hair.

I made this dress to have the serged fabric edges exposed. I liked the ruffly look at the seams. The dress can certainly be made where there is a seam allowance is on the inside of the dress using only a sewing machine. It would still use the 1/2" seam allowance. 

Tutorial 

Materials
1 1/2 yards of 45" (or greater) wide woven cotton fabric (I used a quilters cotton)
coordinating t-shirt, size 5T 
coordinating thread
ball point pins 
ball point (jersey) needle
serger
basic sewing notions

Sewing Notes
As with all apparel sewing pre-wash the fabric and the t-shirt. 

The measurements provided are for a 5T. The seam allowances are 1/2" unless otherwise indicated. The skirt hem is 1 1/4".

Cut

top tier - cut 2 pieces 23" wide by 6.75" tall 
middle tier - cut 2 pieces 33.5" wide x 6.75" tall
bottom tier - cut 2 pieces 44" wide x 7.5" tall

Instructions

- Serge the long edges of all the cut pieces. 

- With the 2 top tier pieces fabric fronts facing pin and and serge the short sides together. Repeat for the middle and bottom tier. Press to one side the serged seam on all the tiers. 

- Press the hem on the bottom tier. Fold and press 1/4" and then fold and press 1". Or since the edge is serged you can just fold over the 1 1/4" and press. Pin and sew hem. 

- With the longest stitch length on the sewing machine sew two gathering stitches across the top of each tier. One at 1/4" and the other at 3/4. Be sure to leave a long thread tail. This is now the top of each of the tiers.

- Lay out the t-shirt right side out as flat and even as possible. Measure 3" from the armhole. Mark with a line running across side to side. This will be the line that your first tier will be attached to. Trim off excess shirt fabric. I left about 1" below the line. (Note: I ended up changing this to 2" from the armhole for a more empire waist)

- Line up the top of the top tier side seam to the t-shirt side seams. The skirt tier should be on top. The top tier 1/2 seam allowance needs to line up the line marked on the t-shirt. With the ball tip pins, pin sides in place. Gently pull the gathering threads on the front of the skirt to gather the fabric to match the width of the shirt. You will need to fuss a bit to have the gathers evenly distributed. With ball tip pins, pin in place. Repeat on the back.

- Make sure your sewing machine stitch length has been shortened back to normal and has ball point needle. Sew the top tier to the shirt. Between the two gathering stitches is 1/2". Do your best to stay between the gathering stitches. This will make it easier to remove them later.

- Repeat the process attaching the middle tier to the top tier. The middle tier should be on top of the top tier. They need to over lap 3/4" (the edge of the top tier fabric with the 3/4" gathering stitch of the middle tier) Note: I find it helpful on on the middle and bottom tier's to locate middle like I show with the pins above. Then pull the gathering stitches in quarter's instead of just front and back since there is so much fabric to deal with. Gather, pin in place and sew. (Ball point needle & pins are not necessary anymore)

- Repeat again attaching the bottom tier to the middle tier. 

- Remove all six of the gathering stitches from the dresses. All done! 

Embellish with bows or flowers if you wish.

This flower was easy to put together and it is attached with a hair clip. This way she can wear it however she would like.

Isn't she darling!

First Spin  

Look at that smile! That's why it had to be twirly.

I am so happy this worked out. Seeing her smile is worth a million bucks! I knowing she is going to get lots of spinning miles on this dress. 

I see a lot more of these dresses in my future. So easy and so many fabric's to mix and match. I can't wait!

Thanks for stopping by the nest!

Darla